Learning To Live Again
by twistedmelody621
Summary: The divorce was final...his daughter was living with his ex-wife and her boyfriend. How hard is it learning to live again? (Sorry for sucky summary, give me a chance! First-time writing!)
1. Chapter 1

HI! This is my first fan fiction. I've read a ton, but this is my first go-round. Please read and review. I do not own WWE or anyone mentioned accept for any OC's mentioned later. Thanks!

**Six Months Ago…**

Randy listened to the judge rattle off the terms of his divorce and listened to him finalize it. He closed his eyes and wished it was all just a bad dream. As the gavel slammed down with a loud crack, Randy's eyes opened again. He looked over at Samantha, who looked all prim and proper, but she wasn't even looking over at him. She was shaking hands with her lawyer and gathering her things.

As he left the courthouse, he saw Samantha getting into her car. He watched as she got settled, and pulled away. This was it. The end has happened and now he was officially divorced.

They had been separated since March, but this was it. This was the end of the end. The divorce was officially final. Never in a million years did he think that he would be divorcing Samantha. Even as she moved her stuff and their daughters' stuff out of the house, did he think she would never come back home.

But she never did. Instead, she got a divorce attorney, and a new boyfriend. A boyfriend, who went to work and was home every night, A boyfriend who would never have to miss any of Alanna's recitals or school activities.

Randy sighed and started his Range Rover. Now it was time to figure out what the hell to do next. What now? He had refused to date anyone during the separation, just in case Samantha had changed her mind. But her new boyfriend was absolutely destroying his hopes.

Randy pulled into his driveway and turned off the engine. But he didn't get out right away. He sat there thinking. He needed to get his shit together for his daughters' sake. He couldn't let himself slide into old habits.

One major fuck up and Samantha would take Alanna away from him and he'd never see her again. Sam had made that brutally known when she had stopped by with Alanna for his visitation one time after they had separated and he had been hungover and probably still drunk.

Come to think of it, Samantha had met her boyfriend very shortly after that ordeal. But Randy had never made that mistake again. He had drank, but never the night before he got Alanna. And only a beer or two during a game or with dinner if Alanna was with him.

Randy finally got up and walked inside. He grabbed his phone and began to text John. "Well, it's officially final."

John text him back, "I'm sorry dude. Are you ok?"

"Yeah…I just need the night. Life begins tomorrow. Tonight is about me." Randy replied.

"Alright, just be careful dude. Ok?"

"Yup, I'll text you in the morning." Randy text, then he turned his phone off.

What do you think will happen next? Will Randy keep himself on the straight and narrow? Or do you think he'll wind up screwing up before he figures it out? Reviews equal updates!


	2. Chapter 2

As time began to pass, Randy felt like he would never find real love again. His friends and family would encourage him to date, but no one came anywhere close to feeling like someone he could spend the rest of his life with. He poured himself into his work and his daughter and pretty much gave up on love.

Randy slowly began to rebuild his life. He threw himself into work and spending as much time as he could with his daughter. Everyone he knew was to talk Randy into going out and trying to meet someone, but he never took them up on their offers. All that mattered was working and Alanna.

The doorbell rang and Randy headed to open the door. There stood Samantha with Alanna holding her hand. "Hi Daddy!" Alanna said happily.

Randy smiled, "Hey baby girl!" He crouched down and hugged Alanna tightly.

Samantha smiled as she watched them hug. The two of them had started to regain a friendship and were doing a great job of co-parenting their beautiful little girl. "How's everything going?"

Randy nodded, "It's going ok. How about you guys?"

"Everything is going good." Samantha started to say, but Alanna excitedly interrupted.

"Steven moved in!"

Silence fell over the three of them. Randy faked a smile, "That's great honey. Why don't you go inside and play."

Alanna hugged her mom goodbye and ran off inside. Randy turned back to Samantha who stood there looking sheepish. "Randy, I'm so sorry. I…"

Randy held up his hand and shook his head, "Save it. I'll see you Thursday night."

Samantha nodded her head quietly and walked to her car and drove away.

Randy walked into the house and closed the door. He couldn't believe that her boyfriend was now living with her and Alanna. In the house that she was awarded in the divorce.

"DADDY!" Alanna called. "Come play house with me!"

Randy took a deep breath and walked off to go enjoy his time with his daughter.

The next morning Randy awoke to his daughter snuggling with him, and his cell phone ringing. He looked at the caller id and it showed Samantha's name. "Hello?" He said groggily.

"Randy? Hi, I didn't mean to wake you, but I just realized something. Can I stop over and talk to you about Alanna's schedule?"

Randy's mood turned pissy quickly. "Her schedule? Really?"

"It's nothing too terrible, just hear me out. Can I please come over?" Samantha said softly.

"Fine, come on over. Alanna's still sleeping so just walk in the front door, ok?"

"Thanks Randy, I'm on my way." Samantha said as she hung up.

Randy grumbled the whole way to the kitchen. He turned on the coffee pot, used the bathroom and waited for Samantha.

When she arrived, she was carrying in coffee from Randy's favorite place. "I brought you a grande in your favorite since I woke you up."

He smiled weakly, "Thanks. I had a bed hog taking over my bed last night so I didn't sleep much. Sit down, what's going on with Alanna's schedule?"

Samantha pulled up the seat across from Randy, "Alanna really wants to play t-ball. But t-ball is on Wednesday nights from six to seven. Would you please bring her?"

Randy smiled, "T-ball? She wants to play t-ball?"

Samantha nodded, "Yeah, she does. Her BFF Ashley is playing and she has put the bug in Alanna's ear."

"I can definitely do that. I think it would be great."

"Wonderful. Thank you so much Randy. We'll be there too." She added quietly.

He took a very deep, frustrated-sounding breath, "Yeah, so I figured. I will behave as long as he does. Otherwise all bets are off."

Samantha smiled, "Deal. Look, I've gotta run. But, I really appreciate it Randy. Thank you. I'm going to get out of here before she wakes up."

"Yeah, get out of here. I'll see you Thursday afternoon."

She stood up and grabbed her purse, "I'll register her on my way home, but tonight is the first practice. She'll be issued her t-shirt. Can you grab her a glove, and a helmet?"

"Yes I'll take her t-ball shopping. I'll see you tonight." Randy said as he closed the door behind her.

Not ten minutes later, Alanna came down the stairs, "Daddy…I'm hungry."

Randy smiled, "How about you go and get dressed, and we'll grab breakfast at your favorite place and then we have a few errands to run. Including t-ball shopping."

Alanna's face lit up, "T-BALL?! Really!? YAY! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I'll go and get dressed." And she ran up the stairs faster than he had ever seen her hustle.

Randy walked upstairs and got dressed. Then the two of them headed out to spend the day together.

Randy and Alanna pulled into the parking lot at the t-ball field and Alanna squealed with excitement. She was wearing cute grey shorts, a white tank top and Randy had pulled her hair into a ponytail that was pulled through the back of her Randy Orton baseball hat. She was wearing brand-new pink tennis shoes and was holding her pink baseball glove.

"Daddy! I'm so excited!" She giggled.

Randy laughed as he got out and opened her door. She unbuckled and climbed into Randy's arms. He lifted her down and she took off running towards the field.

They were the second ones there. A woman was sitting on the bleachers and she was pulling her daughters' hair into a braid.

Randy sat down by her, "Hi."

The woman smiled, "Hi."

Alanna walked up to the woman's daughter, "Do you want to play catch?"

"Sure! Let's go."

And the two girls ran off giggling.

"Aww….that's so cute." The woman said. "This is my first time at a sports thing."

Randy chuckled, "This is my first time that she's been in a sport. I'm Randy. That's my daughter Alanna."

She smiled and turned to him so she could extend her hand, "I'm Katrina. You can call me either Kat or Trina. Either works. And that's my daughter Carly."

"Hmm…I think I'll go with Kat. It's very nice to meet you Kat."

Before long, other parents were beginning to show up, but Randy and Kat were still smiling at each other.

Randy felt a hand on his shoulder. When he turned to look, there was Samantha and the man he was assuming was Steven. "Hi Randy. She looks great."

He nodded, "Yeah, she picked out everything." Then he turned to Steven, and as much as it killed him to do it, he held out his hand, "I'm Randy."

Steven nodded his head, "I'm Steven. It's nice to meet you."

Randy happened to glance over, and saw Kat was talking with another guy. He was pointing and smiling. He didn't see a ring on her finger at all, but he didn't know if he was a boyfriend or an ex. Maybe she was going through the same thing he was.

Kat locked eyes with him, and tried to decipher his look. "Randy, this is my ex-husband Trevor. Trevor, this is Alanna's dad Randy."

They shook hands. Samantha introduced herself and Steven to the two of them as well, and soon practice was officially underway.

As the practice went on, Randy kept stealing glances towards Kat, and she was a lot prettier than he originally thought about.

Meanwhile, Kat peaked over a few times and tried to hide her smile. Randy was very handsome, and his tattoos were a bit intimidating…not to mention his piercing eyes. But whenever he was interacting with his daughter, he just lit up and it seemed like being Daddy was the thing he was most proud of.

By the time practice was over, Randy had been kicking himself for not showering that morning. Samantha and Steven said their goodbyes to Alanna and left. Randy was grabbing their stuff, when Kat walked over to them. "Well Randy, it was nice to meet you and Alanna. Will you be here next week?"

He smiled and nodded, "I sure will. It was nice to meet you guys as well."

"Then I'll see you next week. Bye!" She waved a bit and took Carly's hand. Carly called to Alanna, "Bye 'Lanna!"

"Bye Carly!" Alanna said as she waved. "Daddy, I think I made a new friend."

"I think so too babe. I think so too." Randy said as he took her hand. "Let's go home and eat some dinner." But yet he couldn't help but feel a little excited about next week's practice. Maybe he'd get to talk to Kat a little more.

**Thank you for all of the readers! I hope you're enjoying! Please read and review! Do you think Kat will talk to Randy some more? Or will there be someone else at t-ball? Please read and review! Thanks!**


	3. Chapter 3

`*Thanks for reading! Please read and review!*

Randy grunted as he finished out his last rep of chest presses. "Alanna started t-ball on Wednesday." He told his best friend John Cena.

"Really? That's great! How'd she like it?" John asked happily.

"She LOVED it. Dude, she looked great out there. She also got to make some new friends on her team. Now, watching her play with Sam and her boyfriend sitting nearby."

"Ouch, how did you control yourself?" John asked. He knew that Randy was still struggling a bit with hearing about the infamous Steven all the time.

"Well…to be honest, I allowed myself to be distracted by one of moms there." Randy replied with a smirk.

"Well I'll be damned, Randy might be back. Tell me about her." John said with a smirk.

"I don't know, there's not much to tell. Her name is Katrina, but she goes by Kat. Her daughter's name is Carly. She's just very…normal. Down-to-Earth, she seems very nice. I didn't go into an in-depth conversation with her, but I'm hoping to get to know her a bit better next week." Randy said with a satisfied smile on his face. Then he began to jog on the treadmill next to the one John was running on.

"Nice. There is only one problem with that. You're considering dating the MOM of Alanna's friend. If things don't work out, you're going to run into her everywhere for the rest of Alanna's schooling. And that can get awkward. Plus, if she's more than just a rebound, then you have to worry about uniting the girls as possible siblings. That's a lot to think about, and you NEED to take that into consideration." John advised. "I'm not trying to be a downer, hell I'm ecstatic that you're talking about dating again. BUT, I don't want to see you get into a complicated, hellish nightmare. Divorce sucks enough on its own."

Randy didn't think about it like that. Maybe John did have a point. Why did shit have to be so complicated? Why did Samantha have to leave? Life was going well…at least he thought it was. Randy cranked up the speed and began running instead of just jogging. He needed to work out his frustrations.

"Besides, don't forget. It's officially Summer. That means there'll be lots of hotties out and about in very little clothing and you'll have your pic of 'em." John added with a laugh.

The guys finished off their workouts and headed back to the arena.

Normally Randy would ride with John, but John decided to road trip with his girlfriend. So Randy was alone with all of his thoughts. He thought about everything John had said and he thought about his future…even if his future was alone.

**What do you guys think? Does John have a point? Or should Randy go with his gut? Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you SO much for the reviews! I apologize for not saying so earlier, but I didn't realize I actually had reviews! (I know, I'm still learning!) Thanks again and please continue reading and reviewing. Updates more often from here on out, PROMISE!**

Randy finally arrived home after a long weekend on the road. He spent most of the time thinking about Kat and whether or not it was worth the risk. Life was so frickin' complicated now.

Did he attempt to date her? Did he not. Was it worth trying to date someone not in the business and risk going through all of this again? Or should he begin to scan the divas to see if there was possibly one that didn't make him want to claw out his eyes? Dating was going to be a big pain in the ass now that he had to worry about women only after his fame versus the man he really was.

Although…he spent most of the time he was driving trying to figure out just who he was now. What type of man had he become?

But as he put his Range Rover into park, he sighed. He was and would always be Randal Keith Orton. And although there were many sides to him…he always would be a complicated man. Yet, maybe out there, somewhere, was a woman who could not only complete him, but make his life as close to simple as it could possibly get.

Randy grabbed his bags and the groceries he had picked up and headed inside his house. He text Samantha to let her know that she could bring Alanna over anytime and after starting a load of laundry and putting away the groceries he sat down on the couch and flipped on the tv.

He began watching stuff he had DVR'd while he was on the road and began to doze off a bit when he heard a car in the driveway.

Randy walked outside and Alanna ran towards him and jumped into his arms. "Hi Daddy!"

He smiled and held her close. "Hey munchkin. How are you?"

"I'm good Daddy…I have t-ball tomorrow night, don't forget. T-ball is TOMORROW." She said excitedly.

"Yes love, I promise, no forgetting t-ball."

Alanna grabbed her bag and ran inside the house.

"She brought her uniform and her t-ball stuff and her teddy bear. Please make sure they all come home with her." Samantha said to Randy.

He nodded his head, "Yup, it will."

"We'll be there tomorrow night. Hope the two of you have fun. I'll see you later." She said as she began to walk inside the house. "Alanna, I'm leaving!" She called.

Alanna ran down from her room and hugged her mom tight. "Bye mommy. Love you."

"Love you too. Be good for your dad, ok?"

Alanna nodded her head with a smile. Samantha kissed her forehead and walked back out to her car. Randy gave a slight wave as she pulled away.

He turned and looked at Alanna, "Well, well, well little girl…it's just you and me. What about tonight we grab something quick for dinner and tomorrow night I'll make whatever you want?"

"Ok! Let's see if Nana and Papa wanna eat with us."

Randy smiled, "That's a great idea munchkin. Go get your hoodie and I'll call Papa." He grabbed his house phone and called his dad and invited them to dinner.

They all met up at Olive Garden and were seated. Alanna gabbed a mile a minute about their new house and living with Steven and playing t-ball with her friend Ashley and her new friend Carly. Randy got to talk to his parents a bit about work and life.

After dinner, Randy and Alanna headed home and she got ready for bed. He put on a bedtime movie for her and he headed out to the living room. A few hours later, he played around online for a bit, then checked on Alanna and headed to bed.

The day seemed to drag on but finally it was time to head to t-ball. Randy hated being late, plus he wanted to be able to talk to Kat a bit more before everyone's ex's arrived. So Alanna got ready, Randy pulled her hair into a ponytail and put on her hat and she grabbed the rest and they headed to the park.

Sure enough, Kat was sitting there putting Carly's hair into a ponytail again. "CARLY!" Alanna exclaimed and ran over. Soon the two girls were gabbing and giggling.

Kat smiled and looked up at Randy, "Welcome back."

He chuckled and sat down beside her, "Thank you, thank you. Welcome back yourself."

"I couldn't miss this, Carly wouldn't let me." She said with a grin. The grin was hopefully hiding how much she wanted to blush and giggle. This man was so sexy and had such intense eyes that she felt her tummy flutter everytime she laid eyes on him.

Randy glanced over and tried to hide his smile. Kat was wearing a yellow sundress with blue flowers on it. She had on big white sunglasses and pink lipgloss that dazzled with her smile. "Yeah, Wednesday is Alanna's new favorite day of the week."

"So, do you always have your daughter in the middle of the week?" She asked.

He nodded, "Yeah, I work weird hours so I have her Tuesdays, Wednesdays and it depends on my schedule if I have her on Thursdays or not or for how much of Thursday."

"Wow, that is different. What do you do?" Kat inquired.

Randy took a deep breath. This was one of the questions he hated. "Well, I'm a professional wrestler with the WWE. So honestly, I'm gone a lot."

"Wow! That's…an interesting career. Makes my job look silly. I am a school nurse at the Washington Elementary."

He smiled, "That's not silly, that's a great job."

"Thanks! I like it. Plus I get Summer's off and that is helpful for daycare arrangments."

Randy laughed, "Yeah I bet." He noticed that there were more cars beginning to show up. "So, before everyone is here, would you like to go out sometime?"

Kat smirked, "Sure, that sounds fun. But, I'm only kid-less on the weekends. And you're always gone on the weekends, so I'm not too sure how this would work."

"Well…Alanna is going back to Sam's Thursday morning because of an appointment. And I don't fly out until Friday morning. What about Thursday night?" He replied.

"Hmm…let me see if my mom would watch Carly Thursday night. Can I have your number so I can text you and let you know what's going on?" She said with a playful smirk.

Randy was really beginning to like that smirk of hers. He nodded his head, and she programmed it into her phone. Just as she put her phone away, Trevor walked up alongside of Kat and sat on the other side.

Randy took his cue and waited for Sam and stupid Steven to get there.

As the practice went on, Randy and Kat stole glimpses from each other and both were lost in seas of thoughts. After everything was over, Randy gathered up Alanna and confirmed that he would be dropping her off at 10am tomorrow morning.

Randy and Alanna walked to his truck hand-in-hand. He helped her in and she quickly buckled her seatbelt. As he opened his door, Kat caught his eye and she smiled and waved to him.

He nodded his head and got in. Man he sure hoped her mom would watch Carly. He couldn't wait to get to know her better.

**Will Kat's mom watch Carly for her? Or are things going to be a bit more complicated for them to get together? If they ever get to have dinner, how do you think they'll mesh? Please review! Thanks!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks for the reviews you guys!**

That night, after Kat got Carly off to bed, she called her mom. This wasn't going to be easy, but she sure could hope.

"Hi Katrina! How are you? How's Carly?" Her mom Betsy answered.

"Hi Mom! I'm good, Carly is good. What are you doing?"

"Oh nothing much. Just knitting a scarf and watching some tv. How about you? How's t-ball going for my princess?" Betsy asked.

"Well…t-ball is good. And actually, thanks to t-ball, I have a question to ask you." Kat said hesitantly.

"What's that?"

"I was asked out on a date by a dad at t-ball. Is there any chance you could watch Carly tomorrow night for me? He seems very nice and I really think this could be a good one." Kat began to explain when her mom interrupted.

"You think this could be a good one? Please. Katrina, what do you know about this "dad from t-ball" that makes him so different than any other guy." Betsy said sarcastically.

"Mom, please. Don't be like that. His name is Randy. He seems very nice. He's also a great dad." Katrina replied.

"And what does Randy do for a job?"

"He's a professional wrestler." Kat cringed as she said it out loud, she knew how it sounded.

Without missing a beat her mom began to tear it apart, "A professional wrestler? Jesus Katrina, do you think before you just throw your heart away? Your ex-husband was always gone on business and then you find out that he had multiple girls on the side. Now you're thinking of trying to get something to work with a guy who is always on the road and surrounded by women. Jesus Katrina. And why is he single now?"

"I…I don't know. That would be something we would talk about on our date. If you would watch Carly for me, I could find out." She said softly. "Mom, please. I really need this and I think you know that."

Betsy couldn't help but soften a bit. "Alright, fine. Just be careful and responsible. I'll pick her up after I get off of work, so just let her stay at daycare after work. I'll grab her."

"Thanks mom, I really appreciate this." Kat said happily.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow." Betsy said as she hung up.

Kat hung up the phone with a concerned smile. She was really happy that her mom was watching Carly, but now she couldn't help but wonder if maybe her mom had a point. Was she setting herself up for heartache…again? Or was she worrying too much? When do you know if you are making the same mistake or if there is something different? Was this date worth her time? Or would it just set her up for the same road all over again?

MEANWHILE….

Randy talked to his parents a bit, then called and checked in with his siblings. It was always nice to touchbase with them.

As Randy was talking to his sister, his cell phone vibrated. "What time on Thursday?" is what the message said.

"Holy shit." Randy said to his sister.

"What's up?"

"I have a date Thursday night. What the hell do I do now?" He replied nervously.

"Umm…you take her out, wine her, dine her, show her that you really can be a gentleman." She said with a laugh. "You act like you've never been out before."

"Yeah, but this is post-divorce. Life is different now. I'm older, the women are older, Jesus this is going to be difficult. I've gotta let you go. I'll talk to you later." Randy replied, then hung up.

He looked at his phone, took a breath and text back, "How about I pick you up at 6?"

Kat smiled and text him back her address and confirmed the time.

Randy set his phone down and ran his hand across his head, "Now I have a date…what the hell do I do?"

**Please read and review!**


End file.
